Companions
by LeonPianta
Summary: When transferred from modern to feudal society, one must make several lifestyle changes to adapt and survive. But one should not have to change their true selves. At least, that's what I hope to prove. Rated T for language.
1. Prologue: The Empty Abode

_Note: Yes, Don is posting yet another story. If you are interested in my other stories, I am so sorry that I have not updated them in like 1.3 years. However I finally made the wise decision of not making a new story as soon as I got a new fandom, since I would often fall out of it after a short while. However, be advised, I have been into this for what feels like hella time. I know the character insert into Awakening is done a lot, but I hope you like my rendition. Happy readings!_

Companions

Prologue: The Empty Abode

* * *

It was fortunate that no one ever thought to check the small, run down cottage at the edge of the village. Basically every resident of Caes knew every other resident, along with the small-talk details of their animals, their output, and where they lived. To a Caesan, that little cottage had been empty since their elders were born. The occasional Thief came through town, and even they would be disappointed at the contents of the house—a door in the front, two solid windows, one of which had massively cracked, and a sheetless bed which pouted to the ground.

These facts all became apparent to me within the first few minutes of waking up. It seemed no one was coming to this dumpy place to see if anything had changed, so I figured I was the only one who understood the nature of the bed. Okay, perhaps "understanding" is too strong a term to use. I figured I was the only one was aware that something was hinky with this bed. Perhaps the rest of the house was equally full of hinkiness? I would have to investigate further sometime soon... or I could just let events happen to me.

I was way too nervous to go outside. I glanced through the window and noticed that there was about one person within view, and that number was far too great for me to try and suffer through. If someone saw me, they would almost definitely ask me why the hell I'd come out of that empty house. Would the Caesans find me to be a Thief? It was a reasonable enough doubt, and so I waited in the house. I was completely unaware of the events of the village, as well as those of my family back home; but since I had just arrived here, I figured the latter would have to wait a significant amount of time.

I walked around the cottage absently, praying to return, and then attempting to sleep again in the drooping bed. Had it not been so flat, I could have slipped back into a peaceful sleep, but I was unfortunate yet again. "If I'm gonna start appearing places," I said to whatever power reigned in this world, "it would be great if I could be told where exactly I was." A whisper of wind from the back corner answered, and I shrugged, ready to accept anything. From the dusty floor of splinters and dirt, a wiggle of parchment caught my eye. "Oh, thank God," I exhaled, pulling it up as quickly as I could.

It was no map, but it was a start. It seemed to have been some kind of official document, something to do with a party at a lord's castle. Whoever this Ciray was, he sounded like my kind of medieval leader.

I chuckled once to myself as I finally took a look down at myself. Choosing to go to bed last night in only boxers was definitely a mistake, one which the bed in this cottage made up for. My pants were thick, linen-like sepia, woven tightly together yet moderately loose around my legs. My shirt was a simple yet odd cloth, a yellow orange that seemed to be found beyond natural pigments but did not stand out as particularly garish. I was wearing a modest amount of armor as well, and my vocabulary failed me when I tried to name the pieces to myself, to remain focused of course.

"Dang, I bet Ciray would be impressed." If he had been the lord of the land, I doubted he would be impressed with a simple colored shirt, but I couldn't resist the sound of my own voice. I figured it would be the only familiar one I would hear for a while. Suddenly saddened, I scrambled to reroute my thinking. Right, my clothing.

My boots seemed to be tough, flexible leather, much more impressive than any factory-made shoes I'd worn. I found additional leather atop my shoulders, around the region where the armor plates stopped to allow my neck some space. If I had a mirror, I would have checked myself out in it. I always dug myself with a broad-shouldered look. My outfit seemed to contain one more leather item—a strap that went over my left shoulder and down to my right hip. I figured this was where I would attach a scabbard if needed.

The quick glare of the outside lighting—the only source present, it seemed—pulled my line of sight back up. I peeked through the shattered window once more, moving my head about the sharp, glass edges to form a discernible image of the outside. No one was there. It was go time.

I walked calmly out of the doorway, approaching the forest on the opposite side of the clearing as quickly as I could without seeming suspicious, or so I'd hoped.

"Hail, traveler!" Damn it, I was seen. I stumbled one last step forward before turning around to see who had called me. He seemed to be an ordinary village resident, and he sauntered casually forward, resting a sickle across his shoulder. "Welcome to Caes. Might I ask what business brings you here?"

It would figure I would be asked a question. How was I supposed to answer such a thing? "Iuhhh…" _Nailed it._ The man arched his eyebrows but said nothing, waiting for me to complete my thought. "I don't know. I was just, uh, wandering around, and… here I am." I didn't recall my tendency to continue rambling while nervous. Hopefully it would go away, sort of like my entire life canon.

"Ah, a wanderer." He seemed to judge me as he examined me quickly. He must have noticed I had no weaponry, for he smirked and looked ever so slightly downcast. "Have you come from nearby?"

"Not as near as you'd like," I mumbled. This seemed to amuse him, but his face remained downturned.

"Good luck out there," he said. I figured he intended to offer the society-encouraged good wishes, but his discomfort pushed the statement from him a bit snidely. I nodded once, looked at him for a few more seconds, and turned back to the woods.

_It would be great if something else could happen now,_ I thought. This time, the wind had no response for me. Okay, time for more rational thinking. If I was in a medieval setting, it would probably be in my best interest to defend myself somehow. But with what? The first and last axe I swung was made of foam, so I counted that option out. Perhaps some kind of ranged knife was in order. For once agreeing with my better judgment, I turned back to the village.

It was fairly small, at least compared to the city I grew up in, but there were still several buildings, one of which seemed to be an armory. I reached into my left pocket instinctively to reach for my cell phone, an act of boredom I had enacted countless times in life, only realizing the full weight of my compromised condition when my fingers hit metal instead of plastic. Somewhat depressed, I pulled the metal item out of my pocket, and it revealed itself to be gold.

_Ah, currency. Good call, self, _I thought, deciding to see how much I had before entering the armory. There were only a few coins in my pocket, which was quite unfortunate, but I found a small pouch concealed under my left shoulder plate. Had I designed the armor, never would I have put money in such a strange place, but I couldn't argue with the gift of funds. Altogether, I had 1080 gold, which I assumed was a moderately high amount for one person. _Better put some of that back, then. _

I was fairly surprised to see a red-headed woman inside the armory. I was all for workplace equality, but I didn't figure people still in the feudal system would be so advanced. It was inspiring. I smiled and nodded at the woman, then inspecting the redness of her hair. It was, for lack of a better descriptor, really freaking red. "Come on in! I have some special wares today." Her voice sounded faintly familiar, as she spoke the tone of a quirky and worldly personality.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Well, I'm a traveling merchant of course, so I brought some special stuff! For example, do you use lances?" she replied, placing her pointer finger on her chin and smiling.

"Um, I don't think so. I'm not so much a rider," I said, praying that I made sense.

"Then you can't go wrong with the classic sword. I-"

It was a shame that her sentence was cut off by a raucous sound from right outside. The ground shook, and the two of us, propelled by fearful curiosity, rushed right out the front door. "Oh _shit_!" I tried not to swear as much, but when one finds themselves up against a writhing group of strange, purple humanoids, they are impossible to control.

"Alright, change of plans," the woman said. She tossed me a simple sword, which I could tell was forged of iron. It pulled on my arm a bit, but the grip felt natural. "You help me kill the creeps, you get a discount!"

"Can't argue with that," I said. She giggled a couple of times, pulling out a sword of her own. It jagged back and forth like a lightning bolt, and I had to wonder how that affected its efficiency.

I did a quick count of the undead-looking things. There were seven of them, each wielding a relatively small axe and wandering in our direction. I supposed they had stopped their attempts to attack the village when they spotted us. One rushed over, and I saw the merchant get in a preparative stance. "Ready to get gouged?" she called out, holding her wavy sword aloft. A bolt of lightning shot from it, striking the zombie completely out. I could tell its strange essence had faded away. "Come along, now," she said. I nodded and ran after her.

The sword swung itself easily enough, and it must have been sufficiently sharp to cut through the attackers so effortlessly. Not to say my arm wasn't killing me after my third take-down, but it was definitely a situation I could tolerate. It was the fourth zombie that got to me. I had turned 180 degrees after killing my third to stab into it, a technique I had yet to try, but in doing so I left my left arm exposed to the strike of his axe.

_Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, what suffering is this?! _I must have gasped in shock, because the woman rushed nearby. "Just a sec!" she sang, holding out a long, golden staff with a blue sphere atop. I felt the pain decrease, and called out my confused thanks as she ran back to her enemies.

And soon enough, my first battle had ended. "Do you mind some exposition?" I asked.

"About…?" She looked at me as though I'd asked what a tree was.

"The dead purple guys trying to kill us, perhaps," I suggested.

"It sounds to me like you've just had your first encounter with the Risen," she said. "Don't worry; it won't be your last." From anyone else, it would have sounded like an insult, but the merchant seemed too upbeat for me to hold any negative emotions toward her. "How about this. Since you killed more of them then I did, I'll let you keep the sword, and you can take these—" she held out three small, blue flasks— "for only 500 gold." I recognized the flasks by the "_lx_" scribbled across their surface. Elixirs were for healing completely, and I couldn't turn them down. I handed over the coins as quickly as I could count them out.

"Thanks," I said, turning one of the flasks over in my hand. I tapped it with my thumb twice, tucking it into my larger, right hand pocket.

The merchant had retrieved a scabbard and placed the sword inside it, handing it to me. "Come again!"

Although my confidence after the Risen incident had, ahem, risen, I still felt unsure about the safety of going into such a world alone. "Do you visit villages everywhere?" I asked.

She giggled again, placing her pointer finger back atop her chin. "Surely you know all about the Anna sisters."

_Anna._

_ ANNA._

_ OH! _The realization was so sudden and so obvious that I found myself facepalming after making it. The Anna seemed confused, and I apologized awkwardly, unconvincingly attributing it to a muscular twitch. "W…well…" I started, suddenly unable to hold my new-found confidence, "good luck."

And I was alone again.


	2. Chapter 1: Ambush at Dawn

_Note: If you read this story before any of my older ones, I strongly suggest deciding to not read any of my older ones. Yikes. I have taken hella writing classes since then, so this is as much a fun adventure for me as it is a chance to keep up the skills I've been building since before my FanFic hiatus. I'm glad you enjoyed the previous chapter enough to read this one! Enjoy._

Companions

Chapter 1: Ambush at Dawn

* * *

The woods around Caes were about as well lit as the clearings of the village itself, which lead me to refrain from really thinking of them as woods. However, I was on a path, and there were many trees on either side of me, so I figured I could make the operational definition work.

I didn't remember any part of Ylisse that had a wooded area of this density, but I could have easily been remembering incorrectly. If I'd forgotten a character like Anna, then it was extremely likely I could have forgotten all of the backgrounds. _Damn it, I don't need to be forgetting stuff now,_ I thought, knocking on my head twice with my left hand. At least I'd spent several hours looking at the map, so I could say with a high level of certainty there were no majorly wooded areas. It may have been optimistic, but I figured I'd be out of this little forest before the same time the next day.

However, at that time all I could do was continue walking straight forward, following the trail that weaved at most about two feet from side to side. I figured it would be a while before I ran into anything new, so I pulled my sword from its scabbard for inspection. It had a few dents and scratches from my skirmish with the Risen, consistent with an iron sword after a battle, but it was in nearly perfect condition. I held it aloft, pointing it forward as I walked on. Perhaps I could build the strength to wield this thing more easily than I originally thought. I could only entertain myself with the blade for so long, I knew, but I thought it would be at least a few minutes. I swung the blade about, trying to synchronize the swings with my steps for more effective attacks.

I kept my mind occupied with thinking of as many things about Ylisse and its events as I could, whittling away at the hours with a minimal respect for that which was happening around me. It took a collision between my foot and a rock, along with the subsequent stumble, to fully awaken me to my surroundings. Although I had not fallen, I looked up to the sky, noticing the increasing deepness of its blue.

If I was to guarantee my safety—or, that is, push my likelihood of survival above 50/50—I would have to find a village or something in which to stay. I then switched my manner to an extremely vigilant one, looking in every reasonable direction for signs of life as I walked forward. Unfortunately, observation and attention to detail were not among my strong suits, so if there was a glaring sign of humanity I was almost sure to miss it. I came to terms with this surprisingly quickly; for a second I wondered if I was even awake. The strain on my thighs told me I certainly was, so the only remaining possibility was that being thrown into this nation had slowed my brain's efficiency.

My mind returned to something I'd been willfully avoiding, the battle with the Risen. In real life, the undead creatures were significantly more frightening. I was only thankful for the fact that my first encounter with them had been in the light of day, with Anna at my side. They had moved so grotesquely; thinking about it later made my stomach turn. I didn't know how I was able to dive right into fighting them—perhaps the adage of overcoming one's fears when their life is on the line is true. However, this seemed to be a common occurrence among the Shepherds, who were far more experienced than I, so I chalked it up to blind action in the face of fear.

I prayed a few times that I wouldn't have to encounter those enemies in the dark for a long, long time, if ever. It had become dark finally, dark enough that I doubted my ability to spot a deep-violet Risen in the distance. _Come on, self; find yourself a place to stay._ I was hoping that the woods would end pretty freaking soon, so that I wouldn't be screwed on my first night in Ylisse. There was some energy left in me, somehow, and I began to jog along the trail. Most trails couldn't go on without break for more than a few hours' walk, so respite had to have been coming quickly.

Indeed, I was spared the fate of climbing a tree for the night. While I'd been hoping for a large city and expecting a small village, I had been granted a pair of adjacent tents. My view of the fire that had apparently been calmly jumping about was blocked by the body of a somewhat well-built guy. At a 90 degree angle from him, with her side to me, sat a young woman with blond hair waving down the front of her shoulders.

I must have made a noise, because the two looked at me in unison. It was almost comical how both of their attentions had been caught in a snap, how their gazes stayed firmly upon me with a lack of emotion for a few seconds. While I had been hoping for a more welcome greeting, the man started with, "Explain yourself now if you don't wanna get stabbed."

I was a bit surprised, and I held up my hands as though to coerce him back. "Uh, I don't have a place to stay, tonight, or any night, for that matter. And I just happened to… see you guys here." I very much regretted to impose, especially as slowly and awkwardly as I had, but I figured I could forgive myself with my survival at stake. The male looked over at the young woman, who didn't seem to react.

"Fear not," she said. "Perhaps he is in a similar predicament to ours."

The man nodded and looked back at me. This time, he turned around on his log to completely face me. _…Oh shit, _I thought, internally smirking. His arms stood out, elbows pointing away as his palms grasped his muscled thighs. His entire body was toned, and I may have been jealous if I were not so, ahem, intrigued. I lifted my view to his face—he seemed to have not noticed my earlier assessment—and admired his square jaw, splendid, dark sideburns and trimmed goatee. He almost reminded me of one of my major crushes back home. Finally, he started. "My name is Josh." _Oh, it would be, _I thought. "Are you looking for your parents as well?"

The question struck me strangely. It was an odd thing to ask a random guy walking by, especially in the woods of a warring feudal nation. I figured that I was the only one from my family to be thrown here, so I had to answer in the negative. "Um, no… I know they aren't here." Unintentionally, I waved my hands in the air, signifying the entirety of our area. The young lady wasn't watching me at the moment, instead resting her finger on her temple while staring into the fire, so she missed my gesture.

"I apologize, but we have no business with this man," she said bluntly, as though she was directing her speech to me yet speaking to Josh.

He, however, had seen me. Perhaps the little motion had made him assume my parents were deceased. Anything was possible, but I strongly doubted I had additional cause for concern. One of Josh's elbows dropped to rest on his thigh as he spoke again. "Del, we can't leave him out here to get eaten up. Maybe we didn't know all of Dad's friends," he said, turning to his ally.

"I believe your father would have told you about everyone. You _do_ remember how he spoke endlessly, yes?" Del replied.

"Still. It doesn't matter. We could always use a sword on our side." Josh glanced back at me. "You're gonna be on our side, yeah?"

"Definitely," I said. My voice came out a bit quieter than I'd hoped, and I mentally chided myself. _Focus! Jesus._

"Then, welcome to the crew. You know us," Josh said, simply.

"While he may have called me "Del" I would appreciate you not using the same nickname. The moniker he uses is short for Del'fi." With both hands, she ran her fingers across the sides of her head, shifting strands of her hair behind her ears. She had an intense focus, and I had to shift my line of sight to the fire.

"Are there any more of you?" I asked.

"There should be several," Del'fi stated, looking back at the fire as well. "For now, we number thr—that is, four."

"Our good friend Arcalan is asleep in that tent," Josh said, pointing to the proper one. "We've only got the two, so we're goin' two and two from here on."

"Because Josh and I are practically siblings, we have been sharing a tent and letting Arcalan alone. However, I sincerely doubt he would appreciate awakening next to a stranger. As such, I will be joining him." Del'fi stood up. "It's quite late. The sun is down. We must go along to bed." She nodded to us both and entered Arcalan's tent.

…Wait, I was sharing a tent with Josh? And I was supposed to sleep? Oh my goodness. "Alright, we should head to bed too. You'll be in a sleeping bag; hope you don't mind."

"No, that's totally fine," I replied. We settled into the tent, and I rotated to my side to try to avoid staring at him the whole night. Crap, I rolled over right onto my scabbard. "Well, hell," I said, awkwardly unclipping the infernal contraption and pulling it from the bag.

"You might want to keep that right with you, uh…" He paused as though in thought. "You never told me your name."

My name. Um… damn. Did I want to tell them my real name? I couldn't think of a compelling reason why not, but something told me it wasn't the wisest idea. _Alright brain, give me a good one._

Since I was talking to Josh, the best example of a "good one" my brain could give me was my real damn name. "Donkan," I answered, silently cursing myself again. I had always been averse to it, considering it nothing more than a bastardization of "Duncan," but if it had any advantages, it was that it was likely appropriate for an environment such as this.

"Donkan…" Josh said, quietly. "Is that Feroxi?"

Huh, perhaps it was, and this was what my parents had been preparing me for. "I… I don't know. I never asked," I said.

"…Alright. Night." He didn't seem one for fanciful conversation, so I let him be and tried to settle into a peaceful sleep.

* * *

The morning came sooner than I'd hoped. Of course, for the common folk of this continent, sunrise meant awakening, so I sat up and attempted to become fully conscious of the world around me. I looked over, expecting to see Josh standing tall and ready next to me, but it seemed he was already outside preparing breakfast.

I assumed Del'fi had already told their other friend about me, because there was a new voice from outside the tent. "Uh, hello, you in there?" he asked.

"Yeah. You're… Arcalan?" It took me a minute to remember everything I'd experienced the night before, but fortunately I had a pretty firm grasp. Upon waking up in the morning, I willed my mind to forget all kinds of useless stuff from before—where I'd left my keys, which books to take for class, all that nonsense—so I would have plenty of space to fill with a menagerie of new people. And if I'd met three on my first day, that could only mean I was on the fast track to meeting forty more.

_Oh, frick,_ I thought. Arcalan had started talking while I was off in my wandering mind. I mentally facepalmed as I slid back into hearing. "…your name, so uh, I guess you didn't tell her." The two of us looked at each other for a few seconds. From what I could tell, he was a standard Fighter. He carried an iron axe in his right hand, and I could see the hilt of a short axe tucked into his belt. His left hand slowly came up to scratch his head. He moved a few blue strands to the side before speaking again. "Sometime today?"

"It's, uh, Donkan," I managed to get out, laying the fake-name plan to rest. I could tell from the look on Arcalan's face that he wasn't the most sociable person in the world, and he seemed at least content that their new guest was just as awkward. He nodded a couple of times before backing away from the tent and sitting with Josh and Del'fi.

Left again to my own thoughts, if only for a minute, I prepared to get dressed. _Hmm, do I even need to?_ The bed in the old shack didn't exactly provide me with multiple sets of smallclothes, and the only possessions of mine I wasn't exactly wearing were the sword and the coin sack, so I just sort of rolled up my sleeping bag and exited.

"So… do we have like a plan-of-motion here?" I asked the trio. They all looked up at me simultaneously, as though what I suggested was a well in the psycho range. "Like, are we traveling any, looking for something maybe…?"

"Oh, sorry I didn't tell you this before," Josh started. He looked back at the pan he kept stable over the fire. The unidentifiable meat upon it continually puffed off steam, easing into a steady sizzle before he spoke again. "We're trying to find the Shepherds."

"You did begin to hint at it last night," Del'fi whispered snidely, assuming I was just out of earshot. She failed to account for the fact that my decision whether or not to stay with these three was dependent on my apparent safety, and I was astutely focused on their words.

"Sorry," Josh hissed back, even more quietly. I didn't want to strain to hear and thus seem intrusive, so I missed out on his next line.

"Silence!" Del'fi commanded in a whispered tone. I jumped in surprise, not expecting the rage complex to be a feature of the formally composed girl. Arcalan looked at me and made a facial expression as one would while exaggeratedly shrugging.

Josh slowly turned back to me. "Anyway, Donkan, are you familiar with the group?" Naturally, I was. Anna may have slipped my mind, but I'd be damned before I forget someone plot significant, like Chrom. Not wanting to slip out of the conversation again, I forced myself to nod twice, directly at Josh, allowing him to continue. "The thing is, there's going to…well, there is this big conflict going on, and it's definitely going to escalate into war."

"The Shepherds of Ylisse need as many helpers as they can get," Del'fi stepped in, picking up the pace of the conversation. To be honest, I was grateful; Josh's slow and hand-picked words were giving me second-hand embarrassment.

"So… how do you propose we find them?" I asked, crossing my arms.

"Well," Arcalan started. I waited for him to finish, but there was silence. Del'fi and Josh looked up from the fire, and I followed their line of vision to Arcalan's face. His eyes were blank, and he fell forward.

"Arcalan!" Del'fi cried out. She jumped up and ran to his side. An arrow stuck out of the back of his right thigh.

"Ggg…damn," he answered, his voice hovering over each phoneme. He inhaled sharply, and I remained focused on him, as though my silent will could enhance his healing.

"Hey! Donkan! It's time to fight!" Josh called, pushing on my shoulder to catch my attention. My head angled sharply over to him, and I spotted a group of nasty, purple Archers and Pegasus Riders. More Risen had found us. "You ready?"

My ability to reply was drastically hindered by the compound of the multiple situations about me, so I could only answer by unsheathing my iron sword. I quickly figured there were a dozen of these assholes, and with only the two of us fighting, it would be a moderately tough battle.

On that note, I was wondering if Arcalan really required Del'fi to be watching over him. I glanced back to see him drinking a Vulnerary and yanking the arrow out. It occurred to me that was the first time I'd seen someone else's blood since arriving, and I had to stop myself from gagging.

Josh seemed to be too preoccupied with attacking the Archers, so I leapt for a Pegasus Rider while continuing to watch Del'fi and Arcalan. After he'd removed the arrow, he fell forward as though tired. Del'fi responded swiftly, leaping up and then… spinning and twirling her arms? My blade crashed weakly upon the Pegasus Rider, and I missed out on the chance to dodge a hit. _I bet I'll never get used to this,_ I thought, breathing deeply to focus on my motions and not the sear of blood.

I racked my brain for a logical explanation as I finished off the Risen who practically ran me through. Looking across the pack of enemies, I spotted a major hint—Arcalan was up and swinging his axe, becoming much more effective against the lance-wielding Pegasus Riders than Josh and me combined. _Maybe that's what the archer wanted to prevent, _I thought, and then instantly regretted it. If the Risen knew to take out Arcalan… shit.

That would be something to worry about when all their disembodied protoplasm lied about us. Josh seemed to be the least jaded; his blade ricocheted multiple times per second, tearing the last of the Archers asunder. I figured some on-the-job training effect could work here and attempted to follow his lead. I surprised myself to see I could match his speed, but only for a couple of seconds before my arm began to fail me.

If there was any time at which all my appendages should ideally remain at full capacity, it was that moment. A trio of Pegasus Riders spotted my idiocracy and dove right for me. Since when had Risen been so naturally crafty? _They can't. _I knew instantaneously that I would be unable to move quickly and attack before being impaled upon three lances, and I moved to run backwards.

"Hah!" Del'fi called out from behind me. I could hear the billowing of clothing, and a breeze washed over me. The ache in my arm faded, and I so desired to bask in discovering the sensation of Dancer assistance, but as the saying goes, curiosity killed the transuniversal traveler. Even with my renewed energy, only a single Pegasus Rider fell victim to my attack before the others were upon me.

The simultaneous grunts from Arcalan and Josh told me they had paired up to take out one, but naturally they had allowed it to land its blow first. _Splendid timing,_ I chided at their mental presences, which had no response to offer. I grew instantly tired of the battle, using my remaining force to chuck the sword directly at the final Risen. I couldn't tell if my attack had paid off, or if the weapon advantage had worked in Arcalan's favor. I dropped to my knees in exhaustion, reaching into my pockets for an Elixir. I never quite reached one.


	3. Chapter 2: Night Rise

_Note: In case you couldn't tell that I am awful at writing battle scenes, it will become glaringly obvious this chapter. Hopefully you enjoy it! I didn't get to examine it too closely this time. Please PM me or something if you find any grammar errors or accidental present tense! Thanks, and enjoy._

Companions

Chapter 2: Nightrise

* * *

"Well, seems you made it through." Arcalan was kneeling down beside me. I shifted my eyes about slightly to take in the entirety of my surroundings. Apparently, none of the others thought to move me from my resting place out in the middle of the battleground. Not that there was anywhere in particular they could have moved me in the few minutes I was unconscious, however it was definitely the lack of thought that counted.

"Eh..." I said. Arcalan smiled slightly, extending a hand to help me up. I stood for a few seconds before starting to black out again. Curse you, lightheaded tendencies, I thought as I shook my head. Fortunately, two hands gripped my shoulders for support. Ah, Arcalan again. "Thanks." He nodded once, letting go when Josh and Del'fi walked towards us.

"Good to see you're okay, Donkan," Josh said, clapping a hand on my shoulder. Del'fi didn't have anything to add; I began to think she had no wish to become attached to me. I wouldn't be the first to admit that not everyone could enjoy my presence, but I had more to think about than everyone's emotions.

"So... as you were saying?" I turned to Arcalan, but by his face it seemed he'd lost his train of thought. "Before the Risen showed up, you mentioned a plan for locating the Shepherds."

"Hold it," Del'fi interjected. "How did you know that they're called Risen?"

"Um, is there anyone who doesn't?" I asked. If the Anna had called them Risen, I figured it was at this point a well-known name. Then again, those merchant ladies were probably all dimension hoppers, so who knows.

"They have only just begun appearing in Ylisse," Del'fi said, strict and emotionless. She stared directly into my eyes. Even from a distance, it started to make me uncomfortable. At that point, my brain decided to remind me that Dancers could in fact wield swords at this point.

Fortunately, Josh split the tension. "See, Del, he's gotta be from-"

"Wait!" Seeing Del'fi unable to control herself twice in the same hour was doing nothing to erase my unease. "Perchance it would explain this information, but it does not prove a connection," she exhaled, holding out her hands slightly as though to calm herself.

"If I swear on everything that matters to me to not backstab you all, can we please return to talking about how to find the Shepherds?" This seemed to surprise them, and I almost instantly regretted agitating them. At least it had the desired effect, and discussion of my trustworthiness had ended.

"Right," Arcalan started, rubbing his palms together. "We don't have a map or anything, but I've got a pretty good understanding the geography here, and Del'fi's got a great sense o' direction, so we're workin' towards the capitol. Hopefully M...the exalt and uh, the Shepherds are still there."

"Impressive," I replied. "So, which way to Ylisstol, then?" Perhaps this would be easier than I had imagined. The Shepherds had always been an awesome bunch. Perhaps Del'fi would need a minute to refigure her directional senses, and we could set off.

...Alternatively, we required more information than Arcalan and Del'fi could offer. "The problem's not finding Ylisstol," Arcalan said. "We don't really know where here is."

"Yeah, we kinda just got here," Josh added. "We haven't passed a single damn town since... since I can remember."

"Well, maybe I can be of assistance," I said, just the slightest bit excited. I looked back in the direction from which I'd come and pointed. "There's a small village about seven or eight hours away in that direction. I think it's called Caes."

"Remember it?" Josh asked. Arcalan's eyes slid up as though he was trying to read a map inscribed in his frontal lobe.

"Yeah! Caes... It's a week or so east of Ylisstol, I think. Del'fi, what direction's Donkan pointin'?"

The Dancer's head angled up to the sky, and then almost immediately back at me. "North. Perhaps north-northwest."

"In that case..." Arcalan thought for a bit, drawing with his finger in the air, "we've got to go..."

"West-northwest. For a bit over a week," I finished. Thank you, Pythagoras.

"This is, really, awesome. It's good to know what we're doing for once," Arcalan said.

"Alright, then let's get movin'!" Josh had pepped himself up too. Perhaps he was just as excited about meeting the Shepherds as I was.

Assuming we made it, of course, but I figured we'd run into multiple issues.

* * *

I was honestly surprised that our first instance of running into something was not, in fact, a compound of multiple issues. Night had fallen for the first time on our trek, and we'd have probably just kept walking, had it not been for the book.

That is, as we walked along a trail, a book literally dropped from above us, directly in our path. "What the..." Josh kneeled down to look at the book, slowly picking it up. "It's a tome. I can't see it too well," he sighed, passing it to Del'fi. "Wondrous symbolic novel sent from Naga?"

"Unfortunately, this is of no use to us," Del'fi answered. "It seems to be an Elthunder tome."

"Magic books don't appear out of nowhere," I said, slowly unsheathing my sword. "It's Risen."

A minute voice from above punctuated the silent air. "Ah!" it whispered. "Where is it?" My instincts told me the voice was quite unrisen.

"Um, hello?" Arcalan asked.

"Di...you made it back?!" the voice said. At this point, the branches above us rustled, and down slid a girl. She was alone out in the woods?

"Cyan, well met," Del'fi said, laughing once.

"Oh... Oh my goodness! You are all alright! This is such a relief," Cyan replied. Her face molded into a warm smile of the sort that eased even my sore thighs. She stepped over to Arcalan's side. "Arcalan... Del'fi... and, um..."

"Do you think Del made it this far in life without me?" Josh laughed. Cyan smiled again, and I couldn't fight my own smile this time. More of their friends meant more safety, of course. "And we picked up Donkan here last night."

"Oh, it's nice to meet you," Cyan said. Her voice wavered a bit, as though she was disappointed, but she still extended a hand, which I shook heartily. As I let go, she pulled her arm back to wrap around Arcalan's. "Have you guys seen..." The four of us raised our eyebrows, most likely in synchronization, hoping for Cyan to get our message and continue. "BIG problem!" Her hand flew up, pointing directly at me. I was confused for a moment-what on Earth could I have done in the last five seconds?-but quickly understood she was directing our attention to something behind me.

"Oh gods..." Arcalan said, squeezing his right hand around the handle of his axe.

"We have to get out of here now," Del'fi said. Unsurprisingly, she was the only one able to keep her cool after catching sight of close-proximity flame-engulfed trees.

"Ah, sh..." I started, only stopping myself when I recalled that I was directly in the line of our newcomer's sight. "If they block that trail, we have to find a new road to Ylisstol!"

"Then we will, come on!" Josh shouted. He grabbed my shoulder, pulled me along, and we began running after the others.

"You may be needing this!" Del'fi called, tossing the Elthunder to Cyan, who curtly expressed her thanks. I would probably have to get better at doing things while running, if this nightmare was teaching me anything.

At least I was able to keep up with the others. Well, running is my greatest physical talent. That is, only physical talent. Let's face it, I was mediocre at best with a sword, and I must have had awful strength and skill stats. The fact that Josh was also a Myrmidon did little to inspire me, since he was clearly at a higher level and weapon rank. I seriously considered changing as soon as possible to a magic-wielding class, but I didn't exactly have sufficient time.

"What do ya bet we're about to run into more Risen?" Josh said.

"Unfortunately, we probably are," Del'fi added. "I know of nothing else that could feasibly cause such a fire."

"Yeah, I promise it wasn't me," Cyan said. "I haven't used this tome here… yet."

Apparently our adrenaline was the main force driving us to continue running, since we had reached what I would affirm as a safe distance from the fire. "Can we, uh, discontinue this?" As everyone looked back at me, a look of impressment at our distance appeared across their faces. "It looks like the fire is progressing only slowly."

"But how?" Cyan said, placing her hand at the bottom of her chin.

"I've never seen fires not spread like that," Josh said.

Del'fi crossed her arms and continued to look concerned. "Perhaps we then have more cause for concern."

"I don't follow," Arcalan slid in, holding out his hand in a combination of pointing and exposing his palm.

Del'fi stretched her arms, breathing deeply before replying. "If there is a controlled burning, then there is naturally a controller." And if they were igniting forests, they were most likely an awful human being. "I wouldn't be surprised if the Risen were involved."

I could feel a subtle tingle of emotion working across my face, and Arcalan reflected a look of concern. His eyes narrowed as though he knew my exact feeling and was striving to eliminate it. However, in my selfish ways I always emerge victorious. "In that case, it would be better if we went back and took care of them."

"Donkan..." Arcalan droned. "We've already made it at least two miles from where we started."

"Yeah, but the fire looks like it's only half a mile back. Hell, we could be getting followed." I hadn't considered the idea before this time, but having it pop into my head served only to vex me.

And conform the others to my opinion. "Yeah, the less of those around, the better," Josh said. Excellent, he seemed to be the group's physical leader, and his support was sure to gain that of the others. With a slight nod from Del'fi, we reversed and prepared our weapons.

"Cyan!" A rough shout rang out over the crackle of wood and gusts of wind. "Over here!"

"Oh gods, thank you!" Cyan broke off from formation, rushing to the left of our original velocity. As soon as I had turned my head, I saw her embracing a man, who seemed to be a bit older than the rest of us. "Thank Naga you're not hurt!"

The man laughed a bit haughtily before pulling back. His face slid into what I could only assume was the work of years of practice. The narrowing of the front eye, the angle of the back eyebrow, the corner of the lip moved a fraction of an inch up and an infinitesimal to the left, I was amazed. This guy had mastered the sexy stare. He wasn't particularly attractive himself, what with the swooping white hair and air of narcissism, but I could see how one could fall for him.

"I'm far too quick for that, dearie." His voice practically slid across the air, and he turned towards the rest of us. "Oh, you all are safe. Nice to run into you. Been a while, eh?" He and Cyan jogged back to the group, which I just realized had come to a stand still.

"Uh, perhaps we should make our introductions quick," I said, nodding my head in the direction of the fire.

"No worries," the man said. "My name is Dietr, and naturally I know all of these lovely people." He wrung out his left wrist, at which time I noticed was gripping a long, golden staff. "And you are?"

"Donkan. I joined up with them... yesterday?" I was unsure if the day had changed, since we were in the middle of the night. A round of crackles set off ahead of us, bringing a charred branch to the ground.

"We'd better hurry," Cyan said. "Did you see anything?"

"A crowd of Risen, naturally. The bloody creatures are everywhere."

I sighed exasperatedly. A crowd sounded like a much more serious problem than I had initially figured. "How many do you consider a crowd?"

Dietr shrugged and brought his arms to cross in front of him in one fluid motion. "I guess about thirty? Ah, it was exactly thirty." He placed his hand on his forehead and looked up in thought. "Mostly axemen, and five or six Mages."

I nodded, impressed at the accuracy of his count. "Surely each of us can handle five of these things," I said, regaining my confidence.

"Definitely," Cyan cheered, gripping her Elthunder tome.

"Six of these, unfortunately," Dietr interjected. He held up his staff, showing off the faint blue glow of the sphere atop it. It looked to be a heal staff.

"Alright, then let's get started." Josh rallied us, and we returned to running.

* * *

The first wave, composed entirely of Fighters, was easy enough to dispatch with all five of us working. If the Risen intended to continue attacking in groups of five like this, perhaps my fears that they were becoming overly sentient was unfounded.

The second wave came on a bit stronger, with four of them being Fighters and the last a dastardly Mage. He stood back as the others formed a sacrificial ring around him, and his blasts of wind were too quick to completely dodge. "Yikes," I said, surprisingly upbeat, as a gust grazed the top of my head. "Cyan, can you handle that thing?"

"I've got it," she answered. She fired off a bolt of Elthunder, but naturally one blast wouldn't suffice, and the dirty zombie lived to berate me with more wind.

"You asshole," I muttered as a Fighter dived in to dual strike. Perhaps it would have been in my best interest to live life as a deeply attentive person, but it wasn't like I could go back and change the past, so there I stood, suffering an axe-whack to the shoulder. Fortunately, the Risen seemed to be just as low in skill as I was, and the blunt face struck me in the funny bone. I numbly stuck out the sword and half-stabbed the freak of nature, my arm complaining the whole way up.

"Need a hand?" Dietr said. He seemed amazingly calm for a defenseless man in a horde of undead, but I knew better than to chide the one who was holding a staff and fixing up my injuries.

"Nice," I said, and then stopped for a moment. I'd always figured being healed by a staff was the same as just getting better, but the sensation made me respond with "nice?" Clearly I had been knocked a few too many times.

"Alright, that group's done," Arcalan called out, yanking my attention back to the imminent threat. Two more Mages and five Fighters came next.

"Damn, these guys are inscrutable. Attacking a large group of us in tiny bunches like this is seriously damaging to us and not at all advantageous," Dietr deadpanned. Amazing.

Because Cyan and Del'fi were the only ones with moderately significant resistance, the rest of us strongly hinted at them to jump in and take out the Mages. Cyan and one Mage began a very amusing battle of crossing thunderbolts, but Del'fi's prowess with a sword quickly ended the other one.

I felt a heavy whack to the back of my head. What? Did one get behind me? I jerked my entire body around to see Josh tossing me a glare. "Come on! Focus!" he shouted, returning to his Fighter. Oh dear lord, I probably looked like the biggest idiot on the planet.

Fueled by rage, I prepared my sword for a majorly strong swing. A foolish Fighter ran in front of me. "I don't think so!" I shouted, and the blade came down in an instant, dissolving the axeman in a cloud of purple ephemera.

"Alright," Josh said, still not what I would call happily. "Now keep it up, 'cause that looks like the rest of 'em!" A crowd of ten Fighters ran right in, as though they had just warmed up and were completely ready to fight. I hated them already.

There must have been the last three Mages as well, but I had no time for them. One of the Risen that approached me jumped up in the air, and I slid aside, holding out my sword, so that he may fall on it. It was successful, but the second one was luckier. The axe grazed my cheek. SHIT. Since when have facial wounds hurt so much? A third Risen must have smelled fresh blood, because its line of sight changed, and it made a beeline for me.

"See ya never!" Arcalan's shout from my right was a blessing. He stood right next to me, and we prepared for the Fighters to hit us. "Duel team these monsters?"

"You got it," I replied, grateful for the assistance. Having a Fighter on my side for a change was welcome, and I could almost feel myself getting stronger and more resilient. "Now!" I said, and we rushed in, blades ablaze. God damn we looked awesome. After we wreaked havoc on those who dared attack us, it seemed we'd left only one Mage.

"Cyan, can you…" Arcalan started. He trailed off when he looked at the Mage, and I couldn't blame him. Unlike the other Risen, this one was holding up a dark violet tome. That was impossible; he wasn't dressed like a Dark Mage, unless…

"Look at that tome," Cyan whispered, frightened. It was just a normal dark tome, wasn't it? "Look at that design!" This last statement was whispered as well, but it was as though she was shouting. She seemed legitimately terrified.

"What? What's wrong?" I asked Arcalan.

"That's…" Arcalan started, pointing at the tome. Upon closer inspection, I could see an intricate rhombic design.

"Gleipnir," Dietr finished. The Mage hadn't moved at any point during this, which made me even more uncomfortable. Dietr cracked his neck both ways. "The sacred twin tome of Grado."


End file.
